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Event Details

BandWagon Presents
Thu 03/23

Them Coulee Boys

with Nathaniel Riley • Mike Ring
The Black Buzzard at Oskar Blues @ 8:00 pm Ages 18 and Up
$15.00
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Additional Info
Them Coulee Boys “from pure and genuine ballads to a leaping, countrified take on rock and roll” Eau Claire, WI - The story is true. Soren Staff and Beau Janke—co-founders of folk/rock/Americana outfit Them Coulee Boys—met as counselors at a bible camp in northern Wisconsin in 2011. Having both grown up amidst a stretch of glacial melt-carved river valleys in the upper Midwest, otherwise known by French fur trappers as coulees, they became fast friends. Camp counselors actually coined the name “them coulee boys” as a way to refer to the constant companions, more often than not with instruments in hand. Soren’s little brother Jens joined the crew on mandolin at camp in 2012, and since, both Neil Krause on bass and Staš Hable on drums have helped to grow the band into the rollicking outfit it is today. 2021 marks the release of their fourth record, Namesake, a ten-song collection that spans from pure and genuine ballads to a leaping, countrified take on rock and roll. Singles from the recording have premiered via The Bluegrass Situation, Ditty TV, and Live for Live. Twangville readers dubbed the record “Best New Release”. Namesake was recorded at The Hive in the band’s hometown of Eau Claire, WI. The album was produced by Grammy-winner Brian Joseph who has worked with the likes of Paul Simon, Sufjan Stevens, Ani Difranco, and The Indigo Girls, and earned his Grammy producing and engineering Bon Iver’s "Bon Iver".
 
Artists
Them Coulee Boys
Nathaniel Riley
Mike Ring

Between its driving rhythms, vocal panache, and melodies designed to hook deep, a careless listener might think Mike Ring's music is simply bombastic indie-pop. While the 24-year-old Colorado songwriter powers his songs with an infectious energy—both in his highly polished recordings and manic live show—his true artistic stamp is honesty and intimacy of his lyrics. Ring's lyrical voice is bold and unique, finding deep emotional resonance in sharp, elegant images and straightforward language. His ability to wrestle with themes of love, family, longing, and hope with clarity and immediacy drive the verve of his music.

After falling in love with its small but rich music scene, Ring moved to Greeley, CO in 2012, and began crafting his songs in a space where close collaboration with other artists and openness with music fans is the norm. It's this sensibility, that music is about reaching out and making connections which encourage others to tell their stories, that Ring carries with him as he breaks into Denver.

Ring's wide palette of musical colors, which range from folk to funk to math rock to RnB, is made possible by his careful staffing of his band with virtuosic players (Noel Billups - keyboards, Dan Salisbury - drums), fellow vocal dynamos (Mariah Foster, C.J. Welch) and high-energy bruisers (Pie Lombardi - guitar, Paul Buscarello - percussion). As live performers, Ring and his band are a journey that begins with Ring's charisma and penchant for spectacular (and often destructive) stage antics and ends with the quiet vulnerability that elevates the band beyond most pop acts. Billowing rock organs fade to ethereal pads, jagged guitars descend into ghostly feedback, and Ring's electric vocal runs become a whisper.

With his new single, "Where the Water Runs", Ring confidently brings his craft to the next level. The song is prayer of hope for those facing depression and suicide; it is both deeply personal and wholly relatable. Paired with a short documentary, a portion of the song's proceeds will be donated to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.

“Where the Water Runs” is a boldness in both writing and production. Ring sets his sights high for this track and what we see is a musician both comfortable enough in his own skin and confident enough to go for it. -Bandwagon Magazin